Fire marshal investigating trailer blaze southwest of Rolla

The Missouri State Fire Marshal's Office is investigating the cause of a fire that destroyed a single-wide trailer southwest of Rolla early Wednesday.

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By Paul Hackbarth | Staff Writer

The Rolla Daily News - Rolla, MO

By Paul Hackbarth | Staff Writer

Posted Jan. 3, 2013 at 1:30 PM
Updated Jan 3, 2013 at 6:10 PM

By Paul Hackbarth | Staff Writer

Posted Jan. 3, 2013 at 1:30 PM
Updated Jan 3, 2013 at 6:10 PM

The Missouri State Fire Marshal’s Office is investigating the cause of a fire that destroyed a single-wide trailer southwest of Rolla early Wednesday.

The fire was the third reported in Phelps County since the start of the new year.

According to Jeremy Light, interim fire chief with the Rolla Rural Fire Protection District, the blaze occurred around 4:30 a.m. on Private Drive 7085, south of the 13000 block of Highway CC.

“It’s a total loss,” Light said. There was one man at home at the time of the fire, but he escaped with no injuries, the chief said.

Light did not release the man’s name and said he was unsure of how the fire started.

“The investigation has been turned over to the fire marshal’s office,” Light said.

Mike O’Connell, communications director for the Missouri Department of Public Safety, said the fire is currently listed as undetermined and that it originated on a wood frame porch that was consumed by the blaze.

The investigation could not rule out an electrical or smoking materials origin, O’Connell said.

Firefighters with the Rolla Rural Fire Protection District were assisted by a tanker and firefighters from Doolittle. Light said crews were on the scene for about four hours.

“It was very cold and very hard to fight the fire with the temperatures,” Light said.

American Red Cross Heart of Missouri Chapter volunteers responded to the scene to assist the resident.